Contributors

Eric Nantel
I have been working for years in Industrial Automation and building the DiaLFonZo-Copter UAV/Drones name on my own, making the move to RobotShop seems like the next step. Now enjoying the fusion of my hobbies and day work all in one.

YOU CAN DO ALL FOUR (four comments) TO INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING!

Winners will be chosen at random. Three winners will be chosen and the first winners will get his/her choice of the prizes, second place gets second choice and third place gets whatever is left over! TheÂ contest ends MARCH 31st, 2010 at 12AM EST. Comments are moderated to prevent spam. Your comment wonâ€™t show up till the moderator has approved it. Here are this monthâ€™s prizes:

The Baby Orangutan B-328 robot controller from Pololu is the perfect choice for a brain for your robot. Its 24 pin compact form allows it to fit into very small robots without sacrificing its powerful AVR microcontroller and 2 channel motor drivers. Yep, that’s right – this little guy is both a controller and a motor driver! All you need to add is sensors and some motors. It has an ATMega328P processor, an onboard potentiometer and LED, and 32Â KB flash, 2Â KB RAM, and 1Â KB EEPROM. The motor driver can handle up to 1A continuos per channel, 3A peak.

These powerful 24V motors donated by Super Droid Robots will kick-start your next robot project. They are high-quality motors with steel gears (not cheap plastic), and used inÂ Super Droidâ€™s All-terrain robots. They use a 1:27 gear reduction and have an amazing 12 kgf-cm of torque. That means they could lift a 26 lb (12 kg) load using a 1 cm lever arm! They are rated for < 250 mA of drive current. Note: These motors are probably Â bit too big to be driven directly from the Baby Orangutan B-328P. Try theÂ Dual MC33926 Motor Driver Carrier

The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Idea Book features chapters on programming and design, CAD-style drawings, and abundance of screenshots make it easy for the reader to master the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT kit and to build and program nine example robots. Chapters cover using the NXT programming language (NXT-G) as well as troubleshooting; design; software; sensors; Bluetooth; even how to create a NXT remote control.

The Arduino Duemilanove is a powerful and simple robot controller built around the AtMega328P microcontroller. It comes with a bootloader already on the device so you can easily write and download programs using only a USB cable. It has many digital and analog IO lines to make connecting it to your project easy.

The Tamiya double gearbox is perfect for use in amateur robot contests, this gearbox is suitable for use with remote controlled robots. Choice of 4 gear ratios, offers emphasis on speed or power to suit your needs. Left/right independent design means you can set different gear ratios for either side. Coupled with the Sport Tire set, you’ll have a great robot propulsion system to hook up to your Duemilanove.

The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT set is a very powerful robotics toolkit, but it lacks a detailed user’s guide. This is the user’s guide that every MINDSTORMS owner needs.Â The Unofficial LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Inventor’s Guide begins by introducing the NXT set and directing the reader through setup. Following this is an in-depth discussion of the set’s electronic elements and other LEGO pieces as well as building techniques. Next, it covers the NXT-G programming environment and introduces several unofficial programming languages, providing examples of code and programming insights along the way. Finally, it presents a method for designing NXT robots in addition to a series of projects with building and programming instructions for creating complete robots.

The Herbie the Mousebot Kit from Solarbotics is a great way to introduce ourself or a child to robotics. The kit is a 9-volt battery-powered light-following robot that loves to chase flash light beams. These little robots are so quick, you have to run to keep up to them! We’ve even enhancedÂ Herbiewith functional whisker and tail sensors, so he doesn’t get stuck in corners or under obstacles while chasing around. It doesn’t require a microcontroller or any programming and the kit comes with all the parts and documentation to get started.

LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Thinking Robots includes full building and programming instructions for two of Daniele Benedettelli’s most unique creationsâ€”a brand new version of his famous Rubik’s Cube solver and an interactive Tic-Tac-Toe playing robot.

Rules/Regulations/Fine Print:

To enter the contest, you must comment on this post.

Giveaway ends March 31st, at 12AM EST (9PM PST)

One prize package per winner.

No purchase is necessary to enter the contest â€“ itâ€™s free!

Everyone is eligible, but shipping is free to only those in the Continental US â€“ if you are outside this area, you will have to pay for shipping.

PayPal is required to pay for shippingÂ if you live out of theÂ ContinentalÂ US

Winners will be contacted via email supplied in the comment form.

You have 48 hrs to respond to the email and choose your prize package.

Congratulations on your ten year anniversary! I love the prizes! I wish the LEGO Mindstorms were around when I was younger. I still have my old set in a box somewhere.

Back in February 1987, Boys’ Life magazine published an article about a robot you can build from a remote controlled toy car, named GISMO2BL. My grandpa helped me build one in his workshop. That was what started it all for me, and is what I think of ad nostalgium. One of their latest builds: http://media.scouting.org/boyslife/workshop/gismo.pdf

While I was much younger I was privileged enough to take a summer class for an intro to robotics. It was basically one of those kit robots that you can build from scratch, including the soldering on the circuit board. Mine was one that turned whenever it bumped into the wall or when you clap loud enough. I’m also voting for Edmund Scientifics because you can still buy robots like that from there:http://scientificsonline.com/

Kelly Taylor

Ben

NXTreme

Well, I would have to say that my favorite robotics site is http://www.letsmakerobots.com. However, my favorite robotics forum is located at NXTasy.com. While it only deals with the Lego Mindstorms it is still my favorite:)

Christopher

Robotshop.com is a great website that is well organized and features many different types of robots for sale from beginner robots like lego mindstorms, to the more advanced robots like Nao humanoid kit. It also features task robots like lawn mowers, pool cleaners and floor vacuumers. Robotshop.com also sells surveillance and security robots. This website offers repair services for certain robots like the roomba. Robotshop.com also sells single board computers, servos, and sensors. If buying in bulk at Robotshop, they offer a discounted price per item.
two more great websites are trossenrobotics.com and activerobots.com

Andrew Lam

Kevin

Luv these no-brainer contests! We have enough problems with our bots!
I’ve ordered from many of these companies (not this one yet, though I’ve got ya bookmarked) and the products and service have been uniformly great.